Saturday, December 31, 2016

Top 10 Posts Of 2016

This year was a busy year for me, with work life, mom life, and personal life constantly colliding in ways that alternated between exhilarating and heartwrenching.

WORK LIFE: This year, I published the much awaited second book in my Fantasy trilogy, Selkie II. I attended two signings, and for most of this year, I loved writing just as much as I ever have. The publishing world continued to open up to me, I made new friends, and I'm thrilled with the way I've grown more comfortable as a business-woman.

MOM LIFE: My daughters are growing into beautiful and kind-hearted young women right before my eyes. My oldest daughter is entering the teen years with excitement and pride, and I'm thrilled to watch her mature as she becomes the woman she will someday be. My youngest is a budding bookworm with a soft heart and a huge personality, and I've enjoyed watching her learn more this year about the world around her. Together, they are my biggest accomplishment and my dearest source of pride and joy. If I do nothing else right in this life, I will always be proud of my part in raising them to be who they are.

PERSONAL LIFE: After a long effort to work things out with my former partner, deciding to really call it quits and move my life in other directions has opened my heart in ways I never expected. The changes this brought into my life have been whirlwind and terrifying - but my confidence has grown in leaps and bounds, I've learned more than I ever expected to about recovering from adverse circumstances, and I'm finally in a place where I accept myself unconditionally.

Much of the above-mentioned growth has become the catalyst which changed this blog in such a strong way. Now, it's more than just another author blog, more than my effort to sell books and reach readers. Now it's an outlet, and I hope very much to see it become a community. Sure, I'll still talk about books, but I also plan to talk about other things, too - like movies and music, mental health and my pursuit of happiness, my favorite things, and maybe even a few sponsored posts, so that I can support my blog, my writing, and my family, all while sharing the best of everything in my life with you, my readers.

For now though, let's end the year on a high note - with a look back at what you loved the most about this blog in the last twelve months. Here are ...

2.) "Fighting For Freedom" - in this one, I talked about why Fighting For Freedom is one of my favorites of my books, and how closely its subject matter aligns with my personal life. As this year went on, I felt more and more connected to this story - to the point that I had to take a break from writing it. I hope to see a return of my ability to put my own personal circumstance aside, so that I can continue to share Christine's story.

3.) "Self-Confidence And Body Positivity" - here, I made a point to address a review on Fat Chance. The reviewer accused me of fat-shaming in that book, and as a plus sized girl who wrote the story in hopes of giving the rest of the world a glimpse at what plus-sized life can really be like, I was justifiably upset. The rest of the review didn't bother me, and I'm really fine with the fact that all books are not always satisfying for all readers - but I couldn't sit back and let anyone accuse me of fat shaming without saying something about it.

4.) "What #BodyPositive Really Means (To Me)" - the body-positive movement was still very much in my newsfeed and it came up often in conversations I shared with friends, so it was still on my mind, and judging by the pageviews, I wasn't alone. This was truly about body-love though, and how I manage to love my own body - despite what is often negative societal feedback.

5.) "Saturday Sentiment: I Can't Vlog, So ..." - I love vlogs, and every so often I think I'd like to give it a shot. And I usually do - I pull out the camera and record some footage, but then I watch it, delete it, and continue to believe that vlogging is not for me. In this post, I talked about how I feel about that, how I plan to deal with it, and where to go from there.

6.) "National Pregnancy And Infant Loss Remembrance Day" - on October 15th, seeking a good blog topic, I went hunting for "National" days. I think there's a National day for just about everything now, but this one resonated with me because I've experienced miscarriage. So ... I wrote about that, sharing some of my story, how I remember the child I never got to hold, and how that lost child reminds me to be grateful every day for my daughters, who walk and talk and live and breathe - although sometimes with a bit too much fervor.

9.) "Christmas Eve: A Peek Under Our Family Tree" - in this post, I shared some of what kept the magic alive for my family this Christmas, despite the things our family was going through. I also shared a little peek at what was going under our tree, with my thoughts and hopes for how the gifts I chose for my daughters might be received.

10.) "Five-Star Reads, 2016" - these were my favorite books this year. It's not always easy for me to find five-star reads, as I generally reserve the five-star rating for books that I truly loved or which impacted me personally. So this post was my list of favorites from 2016, and I hope you'll love some of them too.

Also, don't forget that I'm starting 2017 with a personal challenge to blog every day in January - except for Sundays - so don't forget to check back here often as the new year gets off to what I hope will be a wonderfully empowering and incredibly exciting start.

Thank you - this "best of" list was chosen by my readers, based on page views and shares, things like that. I plan to do it annually, as I think it's a great way to introduce new readers to what they can find here. Other blogs often do a sort of end of year review post, with something from each month, but I wanted just to share what worked here - both for the readers to see, and for me to analyze.

Thank you! I wish I could pass on the credit for where I found it, but it's been a while so I don't remember anymore. Just to say - it wasn't an original idea per se, so you should feel free to use it too.

Love your tops post about positive #3 and #4 so important to love yourself and be kind to yourself. Being a mom is hard sometimes and watching your young ones grow up. Love the bookworm for any child, my daughter was a book worm and still is at 26 which I am so proud...

I don't know that I'd say all aspects of 2016 were good ... Actually, lots of it was really bad. But this post was a great way for me to look back at the parts of 2016 that were actually positive. I'm going to make it an annual feature here.

Thanks for the congrats on the book as well. It was #8 for me and was super exciting!

That's pretty much right where I am. I want to vlog SO MUCH - but I just can't bring myself to do it. Actually, I made a video once and posted it to YouTube, but I hated it so much I ended up taking it down.

I'm going to have to pin this to take a look at all of the great posts from before. I know I have thought about doing something like this further down the road, but honestly I'm not sure I have been blogging long enough to make it worth while. Plus I have to update all of my links since the migration. Ah well. This looks great.

I literally just posted all of these posts into my messenger to binge read on my break tomorrow. I especially love your personal posts because I really feel like some of your stories and your struggles are similar to mine. Sorry to hear about the partner :/ xx

Aww, thanks Ana. I love your blog too, for all the same reasons. I feel like you and I have SO MUCH in common ... and sometimes, you just need to know there's someone else out there who's surviving similar issues.

Its nice to read some of your personal achievements and thoughts.Glad that you have happy teens.This can be the best achievement for any mom.Reading makes anyone complete.So,your younger daughter is in the right path!And of course,the oldest kid too...

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